Our Time is Running Out
by PiratePrincess29
Summary: “Don’t blame him.” she managed to choke out. “It’s me. It’s all me. I end up hurting everyone I love and I’m sorry I’ve added you to that list. But know that I will be hurting as well.” JE-Post AWE Review?


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A/N: Hey guys! Just another one-shot. I had early-release from school today so I decided I'd devote some time to writing. Thank you so much for your continuous support and your AMAZING reviews! :)

**Disclaimer: PotC belongs to Disney. The lyrics 'Our Time is Running Out' belong to the band Muse. I do NOT own these lyrics.**

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She stole his breath with one bat of her eyes. One smirk, one smile, one word from her luscious lips was enough to make him, Captain Jack Sparrow, weak. She had such a hold on him. She was just too much for him to handle. Every aspect of her was too much. She was drowning him in her love, in her selfishness. And although she was too much, he could never have enough.

_I think I'm drowning_

_Asphyxiated_

He had vowed long ago to never fall in love. How did this one little insignificant governor's daughter change all of that? She had him wrapped around her finger. Elizabeth was everything he had ever wanted and more. He had yet to figure out how or why anyone should be so tempting, so desirable as she was. And to think that he had won. He had her all to him himself and he loved that.

_I wanna break this spell_

_That you've created_

But he was still Jack Sparrow and knowing that he couldn't just up and walk away scared him. He was always the one deciding when his relationships, of which there weren't many in the first place, would end. In this case, it was all up to Elizabeth. He would still want her whether she wanted him or not but the moment she tired of him, he would let her go. Until then, he was as much hers as she was his. They both held a claim over the other just like pirates. Selfish, stupid, foolish, love-sick pirates.

_You're something beautiful_

_A contradiction_

She was beautiful and believed in the same things he did. They were the same but yet so different. They both wanted power and control, neither of them willing to give it up.

_I wanna play the game_

_I want the friction_

It had always been a game between them. Ever since that damn island, they had started a game that, had they known where it would lead, they would have stopped. Only now, there was nothing in their way. No pretenses, no image to keep up and certainly no ulterior motives. It was just the two of them and their changing feelings and so it was different now. The game was serious, if it even was a game anymore. Words could no longer satisfy them. The game needed actions to keep it going. And then it stopped being a game altogether. For the first time, it was love that drove them forward and not competition. There were no more secrets. No more lies. Just unbearable, fleeting, ardent, passionate love.

_You will be the death of me_

But this truce between fire and ice would only last until a certain undead captain return. In ten years, she would kill him. She would leave. They knew this going into it. It wasn't eve supposed to be happening but they had decided to enjoy it while they could. His heart would never love again.

_You will be the death of me _

And when her dear old husband found out about their relationship, he was almost certain that he would literally die as well. It was probably for the best, anyway. Then Elizabeth wouldn't have to suffer with the choice anymore. She could have her conscience clear. It was the least he could do for her after all she was sacrificing for him.

_Bury it_

_I won't let you bury it_

_I won't let you smother it_

_I won't let you murder it_

But now that she was his, she was his for the next ten years. He would let her go if she truly wanted to but he would fight relentlessly for her. He would not let her bury his heart or toy with his feelings just as she had with Will's and Norrington's. He would not be the result of another one of her vixen-like rejections. He was not the whelp but he had feelings for her that ran deeper than the ocean. Were she to leave him before those ten years were up, before he was prepared, it would kill him. Again.

_Our time is running out_

_Our time is running out_

_You can't push it underground_

_You can't stop it screaming out_

But they couldn't ignore it. It was there and it was strong. Ignoring it would be a crime. He had wanted them to leave it alone at first knowing what was at stake but the pirate in him won and he and his temptress began their love affair. Once it had begun, there was no stopping it. She tried to make it go away but her efforts were less than normal. Despite their past, she seemed to love him too and as long as they were together, the next ten years would be heaven. But the days were son turning into weeks and it was going by too fast. Before they knew it, those ten years would be up and just like that, what they had would come to an end. And the biggest problem was that he didn't want it to end. He never wanted it to end and he was sure that when Will came back, he would fight for Elizabeth. He would not let her go that easily. He couldn't give up the one thing his heart desired more than to sail on the seas. He couldn't deny himself the chance to keep her forever. Because she was worth whatever end fate had in store for him as long as he went down fighting.

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Never in her life had she been so tense. Never had the pressure of a corset or the expectations of her social circle caused her to feel so suffocated, so trapped. No, not trapped. Free, but stuck in her own prison, one she had created herself. The expectations came from inside her somewhere, the expectation to not yield to him. Whenever she was in his presence, everything about him intoxicated her like a drug. A very addictive, irresistible, deliciously beautiful drug. Ever since she had joined him on the Pearl, she was tormented yet soothed when she was near him. It was such a complicated paradox. She knew that every second with him was valuable and she took advantage of them, regardless of her fear of hurting him or herself. It didn't matter.

_I wanted freedom_

_Bound and restricted_

Whenever she was in his presence, everything about him intoxicated her like a drug. A very addictive, irresistible, deliciously beautiful drug. Ever since she had joined him on the Pearl, she was tormented yet soothed when she was near him. It was such a complicated paradox. She knew that every second with him was valuable but she failed to take advantage of them, whether by fear of hurting him or herself, she was unsure.

_I tried to give you up_

_But I'm addicted _

And she had tried. _Oh_, she tried to give him up. So many times, so much effort. From killing him to leaving him for a few months, it was hopeless to try. She was attracted to him like a moth to the bright light of a lantern. He was the center of her psyche. Everything she did, no matter what it was, her thoughts were always revolving around Jack. His ability to transfix might prove useful in other situations but it just made Elizabeth angry with herself for not being able to remain faithful to the man these strange feelings of desire should belong to.

_Now that you know I'm trapped_

_Sense of elation_

_You'd never dream of_

_Breaking this fixation_

Still, she wouldn't give up how euphoric she felt when it hit her again and again that she shared the captain's bed. Their relationship was far from ordinary. Her relationship with Will as a young adult had been ordinary. Her short-lived engagements to both Will and James had been ordinary. Nothing about the way she and Jack were was ordinary. They didn't just want each other, it was a need. A burning need. He had her under a spell and she never wanted to him to let her go. And it wasn't something they could control. Their feigned hatred for one another had transformed into a burning passion unlike any other either of them had ever felt. And she knew that he enjoyed it. He loved having her as his own. With Will out of the way, he could claim her, take her, love her, own her. And he did. And _she_ enjoyed it.

_You will squeeze the life out of me_

But he would end up killing her. In ten years, when she would have to return to Will to break his curse, what they had would be over. They both knew that this couldn't last forever. It simply couldn't. And so they would make the most of the time they had.

_Bury it_

_I won't let you bury it_

_I won't let you smother it_

_I won't let you murder it_

Jack had even suggested that they ignore what they were feeling because it would only make things more difficult in the end. This she knew was true and she absolutely did not care. She wanted to live in the moment for once and be a pirate, taking what she wanted and giving nothing back only she was giving much more back than she had ever expected. And she received more than he had ever expected to give. So she refused to let these feelings go unnoticed. He would not kill this. He would not destroy what they had. She wouldn't let him.

_And our time is running out_

_And our time is running out_

_You can't push it underground_

_You can't stop it screaming out_

_How did it come to this?_

How did they go from enemies to lovers? She wasn't sure but every day that passed by made it seem a distant memory. It was difficult to cope with the fact that in ten years, this would be over. It was killing her slowly and she knew that in ten years, while Will's heart would be reborn, hers would die.

Every night, she would go to his cabin and they would engage in the act of love. Only tonight was different. Their thoughts were more engrossed in each other making it so much more powerful. Before she could doze off, Jack sat up in bed and she opened her eyes. He usually left for the helm once they were finished. Elizabeth looked at him worriedly.

"Jack? Is… is anything wrong?" she asked, her voice just above a whisper.

She couldn't decipher the look on his face. It was torn much like when the day when the kraken attacked them and she had ended his life. She shuddered at the memory but he mistook it for her being cold and pulled her into his arms, kissing her hair lightly.

"Me life won't be the same without ye, Lizzie." he said in a hushed tone, his face looking tired and… scared? What could Jack Sparrow possibly be afraid of?

A small tear escaped her eyes. "I know." She bit her lip. "But it would be worse if we never knew what it was like. For what we want most, there is a price that must be paid in the end." she whispered, quoting Calypso. "You're what I want and leaving you is the price I'll pay."

"Ten years is not enough." His rough, husky voice made its way into her ears.

She half-smiled. "A lifetime isn't enough. Eternity, maybe." Elizabeth shifted in his arms so that she was looking into his eyes. "But we both know it's not possible."

"Not probable." He smirked but the gesture did not reach his eyes. "I love ye, Lizbeth. I can't let Will take ye away from me."

"Don't blame him." she managed to choke out. "It's me. It's all me. I end up hurting everyone I love and I'm sorry I've added you to that list. But know that I will be hurting as well."

"So leave him."

Elizabeth leaned up and gave him a soft kiss. "You've been thinking about this a lot, haven't you?" he nodded grimly, his eyes unreadable. "I love you so much, Jack. And I don't want to think about the future. It's ten years away. Ten years is such a long time. Let's enjoy the time we have together. Dwelling on the bad won't make things better, it will only waste time."

"Don't waste time or time will waste us, is it?" he asked, his eyes boring deep into hers.

She said nothing, all the words that needed to be said were spoken in her kiss, in her touch, in her smile, in her tears. And in that moment, he knew she felt exactly the same way. Ten years wasn't enough but it was what they had and they would take it and give it all they had. Like the selfish, stupid, foolish, love-sick pirates they were.

_You will suck the life out of me _


End file.
